𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 || 𝐌𝐈𝐆𝐔𝐄𝐋 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐙

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟓 - 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐁𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬

There's a silence in the dojo until "Are we gonna get the karate pajamas too?" Miguel asks. "Quiet!" Johnny yells making Miguel jump from beside Y/N. "The student only speaks when spoken to. Is that understood?" he says. "Yes" Miguel nods. "Yes sir?"

"Always address me as Sensei. Is that understood?" Johnny says looking between the two of us. "Yes, sensei" Miguel says. Johnny looks over at Y/N "Yes, Sensei." Johnny nods and looks back at Miguel. "These aren't pajamas. This is a gi. And you'll get one when you've earned it. Y/N has one but she has to earn it just like you do." Johnny says and Y/N and Miguel nod. "Alright, you two ready to begin your training?" he asks. "Yes. Sensei." Miguel and Y/N reply.

Johnny flips Miguel onto the floor and Y/N's mouth drops as she watches Miguel wheeze on the floor. "Really?" she says to Johnny. "What? It's called training for a reason. And lesson number one, Strike First. Never wait for the enemy to attack. For instance..." Johnny flips Y/N onto the floor and she winces. As she lays on the floor she narrows her eyes at him before kipping up and helping Miguel. "You could of gave us like a warning." Miguel implies.

Johnny yells "Quiet!" and continues "We do not train to be merciful here. Mercy is for the weak." he goes on to say and Miguel pulls out an inhaler. "Here on the street, in competition, a man confronts you he is the enemy. An enemy deserves no mercy. What is the problem, Mr. Diaz?" Johnny turns to Miguel.

"There's no problem sensei. You punched me and I have asthma, so..." Johnny takes Miguel's inhaler and throws it against the wall. "Dad!" Y/N exclaims wide eyed. "Not anymore. We do not allow weakness in this dojo. So you can leave your asthma and your peanut allergies and all that made up bullshit outside. Understood?" Johnny says.

"Yes but those are real medical problems. I was... Yes sensei I understand." Miguel says. "Cobra Kai isn't just about karate, it's about a way of life." Johnny points to the wall behind him. 'Strike First, Strike Hard, No Mercy.' "Take that first lesson. Striking first is the initial first step towards victory. Ok? Like when you're at a party and you see a hot guy or babe."

"Yeah." both Y/N and Miguel nod. "You don't wait for another girl or guy to talk to them first, do you?" Y/N and Miguel share looks "Well I've never been to a party so...." Miguel says and
Y/N nods and Johnny scoffs "Big surprise. All right, look. Striking first is about being aggressive, all right? If you're not aggressive you're being a pussy and you don't wanna be a pussy. You wanna have balls." Johnny uses female and male body parts as an analogy.

Y/N facepalms "Don't you think you're doing a lot of genderizing, Sensei." Miguel says after looking at Y/N. "No. What the hell are you talking about?" Johnny says confused. "Oh, uh, my guidance counselor says that certain words can perpetuate the sexist world view that can trigger-" Miguel says. "Quiet!" Johnny yells.

"From now on you won't listen to your guidance counselor. You're gonna listen to me is that understood?" Miguel and Y/N nod "Yes sensei." they both say. "Now stop yapping and give me 50 push ups on your knuckles. Both of you." the two get on the floor and do their so called push ups and Johnny notices the struggling coming from mostly Miguel. "All right, you two, just do some crunches. Don't you have gym class or something?" Johnny asks.

"Yeah." Miguel says. The two start to do crunches when a health inspector walks into the dojo. "Johnny Lawrence?" Miguel stops mid crunch "Oh, it's "Sensei." Johnny looks back at him "Miguel, shut up." Y/N snickers and Johnny walks up to the guy. "What brings you in? Looking to lose that gut and learn how to kick some ass?" Johnny pats the guys stomach.

"No. I'm from the city health department. This is the list of requirements needed to open up an exercise studio." the inspector says. "This isn't an exercise studio. This is a karate dojo." Johnny tells the guy. "Yeah, same deal. Wow this place needs a lot of work. You're not open for business, are you?" He turns to Miguel and Y/N "You two customers, here?" he asks them.

"Oh, no he's an illegal I picked up this morning and she's my daughter. They're helping me set up." Johnny tells him. "I didn't need to know all of that. My job is just to make this place is up to code. You don't want a scabies outbreak like that hot yoga place over on Tujunga." the inspector says.

Johnny flips through the book "Wait, wait. So I have to do all this crap before I can even open?" Johnny asks the guy. "No, you need to do all that to get the certificate that's required to get the insurance you need to open. But you knew that when you signed the lease, right?" the inspector starts to leave. "Right, yeah." Johnny responds. "I'll drop back in next week for another inspection. Huh. Cool rattlesnake." the guy says. "It's a cobra." Johnny corrects. "Oh, right, duh. I'm such an idiot. Cobra Kay." the guy says and he leaves.
-
Miguel and I clean off the mats as we wait for my dad to come back, eventually he does. "Make sure you two get both sides. And after you're done with that you two can take care of these exposed wires. That's gonna be a lot of work." My dad goes into the back. "What does any of this have to do with karate, sensei?" Miguel questions. "Do not question my methods. Just be thankful you're not a sumo wrestler. Those guys have to wipe their Sensei's asses."

"So I see you were a karate champion, sensei." Miguel looks into the box of trophies. "You don't have to call me sensei every time." My dad tells him. "I'm sorry, sensei. I'm sorry." Miguel apologizes. "I won a couple of All Valley Tournaments. Didn't lose a single point in my junior year."

"All right! What happened in your senior year." My dad looks at him "This isn't 20 questions. Get back to scrubbing." My dad says and some music starts to play. "Where's that garbage coming from? You hear that?" he asks me. I turn to Miguel and see him pull out his phone. "Sorry, yeah. Hey! Yeah, uh, debate's running a little late. Uh, ok. Love you too." Miguel hangs up.

"Don't tell me you have a girlfriend." I hear my dad say. "That was my mom actually. Um, I told her I joined Y/N and I joined the debate together 'cause she doesn't approve of violence." Miguel says and I relax even though I didn't know I was tense. "What about your dad? Is he ok with you getting your ass kicked up and down Reseda Boulevard?" my dad asks.

"I never knew my dad, so..." Miguel states and my dad's face softens. "All right, well stop standing there. Get back to training. And change that ringtone. Get some Guns N' Roses or something." He tells Miguel. "What's Guns N' Roses?" Miguel asks and I gasp and walk away. "I'm gonna pretend you didn't say that." my dad says then he goes to the back of the dojo.